Fathers and paternal family members play a crucial role in children's growth and development. Child welfare agencies, however, may have difficulty connecting with and engaging noncustodial fathers and paternal family members. There are many local and national fatherhood organizations that can provide services and support to child welfare agencies to improve their ability to successfully engage fathers and paternal family members and support those family members in establishing permanency and safety for their children.

Child Welfare Information Gateway has developed a three-part podcast series on engaging fathers and working with fatherhood organizations. We've recently released Part 1 and Part 2 in the series, which features a conversation with leaders of local fatherhood organizations in which they share their perspectives and insights on the following:

Examining fathers' value in the lives of their children

Creating a father-friendly child welfare system

Locating noncustodial fathers in your community

Partnering with fatherhood organizations as a resource to support child welfare practice

Sharing the often unheard perspective of fathers

Both podcasts are available to download on the Children's Bureau website. Stay tuned for Part 3 in February 2017.